DAMASCUS
Syria announces end of operation against Assad loyalists
Syria's Defense Ministry on Monday announced the end of a major security operation in coastal provinces, after days of clashes, violence and reported killings.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights war monitor said nearly 1,500 people have died in the violence since March 6, with several agencies reporting killings of civilians in the heartland of the Alawite minority to which deposed President Bashar al-Assad belongs.
Syrian security forces had neutralized security threats and "regime remnants" in Latakia and Tartus provinces on the Mediterranean coast, Defense Ministry spokesman Hassan Abdul Ghani said in a statement on official news agency SANA.
"Having achieved this, we announce the end of the military operation," Abdul Ghani said.
He hailed "the success of our forces... in achieving all the objectives set" for the operation.
"We were able... to absorb the attacks of the remnants of the toppled regime and its officers" and push them from "vital" locations, Abdul Ghani said.
He said public institutions are now able “to resume operations and provide essential services to our citizens, paving the way for a return to normal life and reinforcing security and stability.”
Clashes broke out last week between the security forces and gunmen loyal to Assad, with the Observatory reporting 231 security personnel and 250 pro-Assad fighters killed.
Abdul Ghani said that "the security apparatuses will work in the upcoming phase to consolidate our work to ensure stability and preserve residents' safety and security.”
He also pointed to "new plans to continue fighting the remnants of the toppled regime and work on eliminating any future threats.”
Responding to the civilian killing reports, Interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa on March 9 announced the formation of a committee tasked with investigating the violence in coastal communities, including “violations against civilians” and another one tasked with “maintaining civil peace.”
He also vowed to "hold accountable, firmly and without leniency, anyone who was involved in the bloodshed of civilians.”
"There will be no one above the law and anyone whose hands have been stained with the blood of Syrians will face justice sooner or later," he said.
The outbreak of violence was part of “attempts by remnants of the former regime, with foreign parties behind them, to create new strife and drag our country to a civil war, with the goal of dividing it and destroying its unity and stability,” the interim leader said.
Following Al-Sharaa’s “foreign parties” statement, some media reports, including from the Saudi-owned Al Arabiya TV channel, have claimed that Iran and allied groups in the region were behind the violence.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei on March 10 roundly rejected the accusation in his weekly press briefing.
"This accusation is completely ridiculous and rejected, and we think that pointing the finger of accusation at Iran and Iran's friends is wrongly addressed, a deviant trend, and a hundred percent misleading," he said.
Meanwhile, the United States and Russia asked the United Nations Security Council to meet behind closed doors on March 10 over the escalating violence in Syria.